Dell Laptops- differences in processors

jay0109

So, so looking for a cheap laptop and see from the Dell website that there are a few options.
€249 Inspiron 15 with celeron processor
€329 Inspiron 15 3000 series with with pentium processor (dual core)
€379 Inspiron 15 5000 series with with 4th gen core i3 processor (dual core)

All with Windows 8.1, 4gb Mem and 500gb hard drives. All with 15" screens.

I won't be gaming. Main use is for discussion forums, watching tv etc.

Will the €249 option be just fine?

thanks (don't have a clue on this type of technical stuff )

Pataman

I bought the €249 option
great little pc
great battery
fine for tv, browsing etc

solomafioso

The processor is basically the 'brain' of the machine. How many concurrent actions (or programs) it can run before overheating and stalling.

Usually gaming machines have higher processors (coupled with high-end graphics card, high value of RAM, etc).

If you wanted to check the difference between the three, check http://cpuboss.com/cpus/Best-Type-Laptop-cpus-4788936

Eg, the link below will compare the basic spec with another (the celeron).

http://cpuboss.com/cpus/Intel-Core-i3-3217U-vs-Intel-Celeron-N2830

jay0109

Pataman wrote: »

I bought the €249 option
great little pc
great battery
fine for tv, browsing etc

thanks
I've just done a compare of the 3 versions and see that the €249 option doesn't have an Optical drive so I would'nt be able to burn DVD's from my video camera downloads. Really need that

solomafioso

jay0109 wrote: »

thanks
I've just done a compare of the 3 versions and see that the €249 option doesn't have an Optical drive so I would'nt be able to burn DVD's from my video camera downloads. Really need that

You could buy an external burner?

http://www.komplett.ie/search.aspx?tn_q=dvd%20burner

Might work out cheaper than buying the next model up.

jay0109

solomafioso wrote: »

You could buy an external burner?

http://www.komplett.ie/search.aspx?tn_q=dvd%20burner

Might work out cheaper than buying the next model up.

Perfect. So you'd just buy 1 of these and plug it into the laptop.
It would indeed work out much cheaper

Pataman

Thats what i did

jay0109

Thanks Pataman

any old basic optical drive work?

Also, will this laptop hook up without any issues to a TV?

solomafioso

jay0109 wrote: »

Perfect. So you'd just buy 1 of these and plug it into the laptop.
It would indeed work out much cheaper

Yup yup!

jay0109 wrote: »

Thanks Pataman

any old basic optical drive work?

Also, will this laptop hook up without any issues to a TV?

Just ensure you're getting the right drive. DVD R/RW. I'm sure CD R/RW's are a thing of the past now. I see there's even a bluray burner!

The laptop has a HDMI port. Just check your TV does too!

Pataman

I havent tried it connected to tv yet but it has a hdmi connector on it

Jim Rockford

jay0109 wrote: »

Perfect. So you'd just buy 1 of these and plug it into the laptop.
It would indeed work out much cheaper

and you don't have to carry it around in the laptop all day

If you don't like to change your computer too often maybe go with the faster processor, the price difference for those chips is about right, and over the long term not much extra.

Alternatively, you can by the lower spec, wait a year or two and, and you'll be able to pop in a second hand i3 processor (at least) and extra memory for a lot less, an SSD drive, and get another year or two out of her.

It's all swings and roundabouts really.

Dell is a good enough choice, you can't go too far wrong, and later on second hand parts, and repair solutions are very easy to find due to it's shear numbers.

jay0109

Thanks all.....a very knowledgeable bunch!

Seamu$

jay0109 wrote: »

Perfect. So you'd just buy 1 of these and plug it into the laptop.
It would indeed work out much cheaper

Some of the drives in the link are internal drives so not suitable for what you require. 2 of them are "usb 2.0" and are the external type of burner you need to plug into a usb port on any PC or laptop. Similar one here and here

mad m

Lads,

A friend of mine is looking for a laptop also, he is in his 70s, has to do online banking, looking at emails and probably printing off stuff. Would you say that dell 249euro laptop would be fine for him?

jay0109

Ordered it last Thursday and delivered this AM. So will check it out this eve when I get home

mad m

Lads how would this compare to the Dell laptop at 249?

http://www.pcworld.ie/Product/compaq-15h011sa-156andrdquo-laptop/317531/104.12